[lyk]

So I messed around with some fiberglass yesterday to see what the results would be...


the fiberglass was pretty flexible, so would that mess the sound of the bass any way? Also, I noticed that a lot of people who have fiberglass enclosures use wood to screw the subwoofer onto the fiberglass enclosure.. is that necessary ? I do not have the tools to make a round cut of wood...

I am going to start my fiberglass experiment tmr so I need to know. I'll post plenty of pictures


(my washer machine broke so my wooden enclosure got all messed up... time to move to fiber glass)

 

[ItalynStylion]

So I messed around with some fiberglass yesterday to see what the results would be...


the fiberglass was pretty flexible, so would that mess the sound of the bass any way? Also, I noticed that a lot of people who have fiberglass enclosures use wood to screw the subwoofer onto the fiberglass enclosure.. is that necessary ? I do not have the tools to make a round cut of wood...

I am going to start my fiberglass experiment tmr so I need to know. I'll post plenty of pictures


(my washer machine broke so my wooden enclosure got all messed up... time to move to fiber glass)

I've never personally fiberglassed before but as far as I know it isn't supposed to be flexible in any way. If I had to guess I would say that it sounds like you didn't do enough coats of resin.

 

[IS300included]

Subscribed.... this is gonna be entertaining.

Here are some general fiberglass tutorials... just so I'm not being a dick:

glassfiber subbox construction foto sequence - Diy Mobile Audio
Fiberglass subwoofer box - a tutorial <<<This one is excellent

 

[lilboi]

Fiberglassing is not fun at all. I spent three months on a box i made two summers ago. It was for my prelude. It sounded great afterwards but just took way to much time. Here's what you can accomplish if you take your time. (this is the first time i ever touched this stuff too).

I just recomend using a very obsorbant fleece material so that the resin gets compleatly soaked. Apply several layers on, and take your time. I ended up putting about 7 layers or resin. Try to get everything smooth when you put your layers on. I spent more time with bondo then i did with the actual fiberglass. To finish things off, i would bring it to a auto body shop and have them do the final sanding and painting. That's how you get that nice gloss finish w/o bumps here and there. Good luck with your project.

Here are a couple pictures from the different stages.
Test fit in trunk

Build the rings out of 3/4 mdf (2 pieces, make sure its larger then the speaker)

Wrap with fleece (purple was cheep)

A month worth of fiberglassing. Looks a little rough.

Bondo-ed - Sanded - Primered

Back from the auto shop

 

[ItalynStylion]

How much are all the materials for fiberglassing? EDIT: Abes tutorial has a price out

I've never made an enclosure out of anything besides wood but I've always been interested in fiberglass since it's possibilities are endless. I just love how smooth everything comes out. I need to learn.

PS: nice looking box lilboi +rep

 

[stjarvis]

looks like he's got u covered, but just a few quick things: cut yourself a speaker ring out of 3/4 mdf and build a skeleton around that to glass to. Make sure you completly saturate whatever fabric you use for the first layer, felt eats a lot of resin. And lastly, kitty hair aka long strand fiberglass filler is your friend when your trying to smooth it out, use it or the project will take forever. Oh and wear a resparator and long sleeves when sanding.

 

[is300tt]

damn lilboi thats a big ass box..!!!!!!!


anyways back to the topic

i built my box about 2 years ago..with fiberglass..my sub sits in the spare tire well and i have my complete trunk to use..i just got a JL audio grill and placed it over my JL audio w3v2 and lay the factory carpet over the woofer....so when my trunks popped you see nothing but the first aid pouch

 

[lyk]

nice is300tt and lilboi


I really need a table saw and jig saw... all i have is an electric saw LOL

anyways... since the wood isn't perfect fit i am going to fiberglass the inside of the box as well so its air tight. I dont know if i am going to rent a jig saw or just buy one... you guys think i'll be using it again. ever?

well I start tmr... thanks for all the tips guys.

 

[lilboi]

Buy a jig saw and a circular saw. Thats all i pretty much used. A belt sander is a must for bondoing. You'll use it again; you're still young!

 

[lyk]

yeh I just got a jig saw this morning... right now I trying to figure out how I want the top of my box to look... (I have enough fiberglass mat to cover the top)

 

[is300tt]

dont forget to fill it with water to see if it leaks thats what i did

i will take pics and post in a little bit

 

[lyk]

man... so I learned two things on saturday,

first thing... particle wood is weak sauce... it keep breaking on me when I put a screw in... I tried to ignore it

second thing... fiberglass cloth likes to break... it's awesome that it rips so easy, so hen you can just rip and add cloth where you need it... but man, that stuff broke down on me the first 5 mins..
(use fiberglass mat (not cloth) if you are going to cover a big spot. the cloth is stronger after you put the resin and hardener on though.
I ended up quiting on this box because the particle wood wont cut it and I messed up on the fiberglassing

it looks like a disaster.. do not use particle wood :disagree: I'm going to call this my practice enclosure

welp.. I bought plywood sunday night and started all over. took about an hour to cut all the wood so the box would fit the weird shapes in the trunk... try counting all the screws in the box... this bz is airtight

I stuck with the box like enclosure so I could calculate the amount of shape I have inside the box (it's from 2.5 ~ 2.7 cubic feet)
then I started ripping all the fiberglass cloth to figure out how I was going to put it on without it ripping on me again

apply a little resin and hardener (I'll finish the bottom of it when the top part dries)

If you look closely you can see my dog's footprint. she was licking and sniffing the plywood... what's up with that?
home depot ran out of fiberglass resin... I need to wait til the 21st... :wtf:

I am pretty happy with it so far. I am going to try to finish up putting all the resin and hardener on today after work (theres another home depot on my way home from work, so I'll buy a gallon of fiberglass resin there) so I could post a picture up before I attempt to sand and paint it.


(the title says, "Trying to DYI fiberglass" I really meant I'm trying to do it myself fiberglass... LMAO I hope no one misunderstood me.)

Pricing:
Plywood: $22
Fiberglass Resin and Hardener: $15 (so far; I'm going to need a gallon more so add $30 more)
Fiberglass Cloth: $7

Extras:
Screws: $7
Jig Saw: $30 (cheapest one)
Respirator: $3 (pack of two)
Gloves: $5 (pack of 10)
Paint brush: $0.7 each (get atleast 2)


Note for anyone who wants to make a fiberglass enclosure:
if you are debating over a full fiberglass enclosure (taping the inside of your trunk and applying resin inside the trunk) or what I did (wood box)... do what I did because the resin smells like butthole and the smell will haunt your car for 3 days... it's also not that great to be inhaling the resin gases.. felt like I was smoking (never smoked before so I am just guessing that's what it would feel like)

 

[flapperdink]

why didn't u just wrap the front with fleece and apply the resin over it? it looks like a PITA to stick fiberglass mat over the front and get a good, smooth contour.

are you planning on fiberglassing around the whole enclosure to have a sealed enclosure? or sealing it from inside with caulking?

 

[stjarvis]

Wow you are making this hard on yourself, you should start with some kind of woven fabric for the first layer, doesn't really matter what anything that has a little give but not a lot.

You can also get FG supplies at any auto parts store, or boat store, or wall mart. Just so your not waiting on home depot to restock.

 

[car_lost]

Why are you using plywood? Should of used MDF instead.

 

[stjarvis]

I actually usually use plywood now too, I know MDF is denser, but plywood is easier to work and less dusty. I just use void free plywood and then deaden it when I'm done.

 

[lisnup65]

I use fleece, T-shirts, sweatshirts, and what ever fabric I can find for cheap to start the form and first layers of resin. When the enclosure is done, it should be more rigid and lighter than MDF. If its a standard enclosure I just keep adding layers or fleece and resin, if an SPL enclosure, I start it in fleece, then go to a chop gun for a good 2-3" base before sanding, bondo, etc... I am gonna start my sons car with 4 DD 8" subs. Maybe I will do a tutorial.

Dave

 

[lyk]

blah... I wish I knew about the fleece... >.<

yeh it is much harder like this... but this is my first enclosure. Now my problem is getting rid of those bumps... I have a few bumps that are annoying me... so I just sand it before applying more resin now?

Actually... if I put fleece over it, then it would not have as many curves as I have on it now... I am really liking the way the fiberglass is shaping.

 

[lilboi]

I swear i posted that i use fleece in my build (the purple stuff). You still get great curves with fleece. If you really want to play with curves you can even use chicken wire. Good luck.

 

[is300soon]

I use fleece, T-shirts, sweatshirts, and what ever fabric I can find for cheap to start the form and first layers of resin. When the enclosure is done, it should be more rigid and lighter than MDF. If its a standard enclosure I just keep adding layers or fleece and resin, if an SPL enclosure, I start it in fleece, then go to a chop gun for a good 2-3" base before sanding, bondo, etc... I am gonna start my sons car with 4 DD 8" subs. Maybe I will do a tutorial.

Dave

A tutorial would be great, I dont want to build a sub box but id like to make some covers for misc items maybe a plate to cover an amp or something or maybe covers for misc items like the back of a monitor I plan to put on the dash.

A tutorial would be bad ass Dave.

thanks
D